Counting more than 70m record sales and 100 years of performances on the world’s stages between them, the Little River Band and The Oak Ridge Boys readily qualify the as musical icons. Needing modern and flexible mixing console to serve the needs of both acts’ live gigs, Nashville-based Brantley Sound proposed the Allen & Heath Avantis Digital Mixing System.
‘Little River Band had been carrying a [non-Allen & Heath] console for quite some time at monitors,’ says Brantley Sound Director of Operations, Zachariah Orbin. ‘Avantis checked all of the boxes and then some when it came to finding a next-level replacement. Its compact design, overall ease of use, and horsepower under the hood were primary factors in that decision.
‘We set it up for a day of rehearsals and I used that time to get the console in-between the artist and their inputs,’ he continues. ‘Their was response was an overwhelming, “Yes, this is it”.’
Orbin explains how he configured an easy A/B comparison by using the free Director software, cloning EQ and dynamics from the previous console and setting them out on various channels and buses. For the initial test, he didn’t engage them, however. ‘I wanted to see what the Avantis would do naturally,’ he explains.
Using this method, the band could hear a close approximation of the previous desk, the more direct ‘flat’ Avantis mix and then an easy flip to engage Avantis preamp models and more advanced sonic tools.
‘I was excited when I could apply some of the preamp models in this manner on the fly and see how the band would react to them—all with positive responses,’ Orbin notes. ‘Some of the features I appreciate the most is being able to use the console’s setup flexibility mid show, changing my workflow as I become more aware of the breadth of navigation possibilities.’
Marko Hunt, front of house engineer for The Oak Ridge Boys, has a similar experience of the transition to Avantis. ‘I had the pleasure of checking out one of Allen & Heath Live Sound & Touring Manager] Mike Bangs’ [ dLive training classes a while back,’ he says. ‘One of the things I took away was how simple and straightforward the dLive workflow is. I felt I could just go out and do a show. This type of workflow approach carries through to the Avantis. But the truth is it’s as simple or complex as you want to make it.’
Equipped with a suite of native dynamics and effects by default, an optional Avantis dPack provides an upgrade of additional dLive processing including Dyn8 (up to 16 instances), Deep Compressors, the Dual Stage Valve Preamp, plus more models as they’re added.
‘What struck me from the first show was the clarity of the preamps and how quickly I could dial in the vocals with the channel EQs, Dyn8 and great selection of compressors in dPack,’ says Hunt. ‘It’s amazing that a desk that is this compact can be so powerful. The two very large touchscreens are less than an arm’s reach away and with 24 easily accessible SoftKeys programmable for a large variety of functions, I’m not hunched over my desk hunting for stuff when I need it. We’re really happy with the rig all around.’
More: www.allen-heath.com
